Housebreaking your Rottweiler Puppy

Like human babies, puppies need to be taught to learn new skills. And like people, they also have different speeds of learning and retention. When you have just brought home your Rottweiler puppy, be prepared for a period of training and education until it will be housebroken and able to learn the different aspects involved in obedience training.

There are so many things you have to teach your Rottweiler puppy and you should already have an idea where to start. Housebreaking your puppy should be foremost in your mind. You will certainly need to devote time, effort and endless patience to teach your dog where it needs to go and where it's NOT allowed to go. Your puppy should learn to know what place is it only allowed to attend to the call of nature.

At first, expect that your Rottweiler puppy will need to urinate and defecate at all hours. Also, at first, there will be many accidents and you should learn to never lose your temper and take it on the poor puppy. When housebreaking your puppy, always be consistent and use only one- or two-word commands. Inconsistency in your words and commands will eventually confuse your Rottweiler puppy and will affect its period of learning and training.

This confusion will often give rise to fright and shyness and result in training setbacks.

Here are some tips to help you make housebreaking your Rottweiler Puppy a much easier and fulfilling activity:

1. Be quick to spot the clues that your Rottweiler puppy needs to go

Be on the lookout for restlessness, sniffing the floor and even returning to a spot in which it had previously spoiled.

Remember that your puppy needs to go about 5-20 minutes after sleeping, playing or eating.

When you take your puppy outside, be sure to bring it to the same spot where it had soiled.

When taking your puppy outside to attend to the call of nature, never attempt to play with your puppy during that time.

2. Be consistent with your schedule.

When every schedule to go out comes, show your puppy that you are focused only on one thing – going to the right area and doing the deed. As soon as your puppy successfully goes, lavish it with praise and don’t forget to reward your Rottweiler puppy with its favorite doggy treat. This is a form of positive reinforcement and one of the back bones of your training program. This will convey the message to your puppy that it did the right thing and you are pleased with its behavior.

3. Try your best to keep your Rottweiler pup close to you at ALL times to enable you to spot the signs that it’s about to go and for you to act quickly. You may put a leash on your puppy and attach the other end to you so your puppy will be visible to you at all times while you can still do other house chores.

4. If you are unable to watch your puppy, you should put it in a kennel or a fenced in yard when the weather is good and if you think that it will be safe in there. A young puppy less than 9 weeks of age should never be left in its kennel for more than two hours for it is unable to hold its bladder or prevent defecation.